Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God... -1 Corinthians
1:1 (NKJV)

Within our human hearts, there's a natural longing to belong to a
cause that's greater than us. For those who never encounter God through Jesus
Christ, this internal itch is destined to go unscratched. But those who know
Christ discover they play a part in a story with an eternal scope.

Paul taps into this truth as he begins his first letter to the
Church of Corinth . He starts out by identifying himself as "Paul, called to be
an apostle." This reveals that God had an important purpose and plan for Paul's
life. God didn't just save Paul for the purpose of letting him sit around on
some spiritual shelf. Instead, He desired to involve Paul in a plan that would
prove to satisfy his built-in desire for purpose, direction, and
meaning.

But we need to understand that this wasn't just something special
or unique between God and Paul. The Bible tells us that all Christians have a
divine commission and calling that has been placed upon their lives (Ephesians
4:1).

In this regard, the Christian's identity is completely different
from those around them. They enjoy a sense of purpose because they've chosen to
play a part in God's master plan. Unfortunately, we tend to forget this fact
from time to time, and consequently we tend to relate more to the world's
emptiness than the fulfillment that God desires for us.

Because we've been called by Christ to play a part in His grand
design, our lives are filled with purpose, direction, and meaning.

Friday, October 5, 2012

FulfillMentor

by Ade Walker

Part 3

We've talked about
awareness of self and how it is a vital component of growth towards
fulfillment. Now, as you are being
aware, by paying attention to the present moment, I challenge you augment that
skill with accepting advise and instructions from yourself, friends, family,
etc., so that you have clear indication of where you are going. Also, maintain a wonder, curiosity, and
openness to feedback and critiques. When
you have connected attention to acceptance of the current situation, openness
to change and a curious hope towards a positive outcome, you have developed
what is known as mindfulness. We cannot
expect to have fulfillment, unless we are mind-full, able to self-regulate
present situations to prepare for future success. Once we have a faithful outlook on the future,
we put ourselves in a destiny that does not exist and we get pulled toward our
outcomes.

As a Christian, one
becomes mindful by filling their mind with spiritual ideals. Philippians 4:8 (NLT) states: “And now, dear
brothers and sisters, one final thing.Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure,
and lovely, and admirable.Think about
things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”The
Apostle Paul is exclaiming that once we have faith in God spiritually, we
mentally are filled with character that fosters our growth and makes us
socially adept. By replacing what is
currently in our mind with what is on God's mind, He promises to lead us to
fulfillment, by dispelling every limitation in our mind and giving us the image
of God instead. Alex Osborne said,
"The potential power of creative imagination is all but limitless." Faith creates fulfillment by placing the image
in us of where we want to be. Many times
we have difficulty reaching where we want to be because our mind is on
comparing and competing with others, instead of being happy with ourselves. Dr. Mark Chironna says, "A key is made in
an image, it is not made in the image of another key, but rather in the image
of the lock." We live in a world of
duplicates; we perceive that others are fulfilled, so we attempt to be like
them. However, a key is connected to the
lock of the door, not to other keys. In
fact, the right key to the right door is so essential that unless the key is
correct, the door will not open. What do
you feel is the key to your physical, emotional, social, and spiritual
fulfillment? What doors have been closed
to you because you did not have, or misplaced, the proper key? Whatever the answers to these questions are,
one thing is clear; a person can show you keys, but they cannot open the door
unless the key and lock (ability to personally apply information to overcome
obstacles to fulfillment) are congruent.

Congruence is a
powerful key to fulfillment because it takes your mindfulness (awareness and
acceptance) and matches it with a mission.Congruence is the state achieved by coming together, the state of
agreement.According to Wikipedia, in
psychology, “congruence could be defined as rapport within oneself, or internal
and external consistency, perceived by others as sincerity or certainty.”At a deeper level, personal congruency exists
when your true desires (intention), thoughts (attention), feelings, and actions
are aligned with your core values.Only
then can you move toward balance in your life and experience more joy,
fulfillment, and peace. Congruence is about honoring the deeper truth within
you.

Take this
quick Congruence Quiz to see how far away you are from fulfillment:

1.Do you find
your heart and mind pulled in different directions?

I want to be
a chef, but I was told being a doctor makes the money.

2.Do your
actions sometimes disagree with your thoughts?

I know I
should focus on bettering myself, but I need to give her a piece of my mind.

3.Do you suffer
any of the physiological effects of incongruence; i.e., stress, inner turmoil
and disease?

Could all the
pressure put on me by my parents be a reason my backaches and I am stressed?

If you answered yes to
any of these questions then we are just beginning our journey to fulfillment,
but all your dreams come true at the end of this destination!Join me next time as we continue by showing
how the mind brings you to fulfillment!

The FulfillMentor
is Adé Walker, a published author, certified Life Coach and educator, and
ordained minister.His degrees include a
B.A. in Philosophy/Religion and English, an M.A.R. in Pastoral Counseling, and
an M. Div. in Religion.He is working
towards his Ph.D currently, while he and his wife, April are the ministry
leaders of the Streams of Restoration Ministries.They are dedicated to leading people into spiritually
and socially relevant change in the areas of “Christ-likeness”, coaching,
counseling, and crisis/career development.

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